Month: July 2023

Potential

On By CarynIn Craft
Freshly painted, mostly empty room

With our great room switch this summer, I have decided to move my crafting hoard into the spare bedroom. The kids’ rooms have been painted and moved into, with just a few extra projects to be done, and now I can get started on this last room. We fixed the holes in the walls, painted, touched up the ceiling, and painted the trim. It is a very long room, the picture above only shows about half the space, but the other half is where I shoved the painting paraphernalia so I could take the potential picture. Now is also the daunting part: going through my craft supplies and figuring out new ways and places to store things. I will have a couple tables out all the time, rather than just as needed, which is exciting. My husband is looking forward to having a master bedroom closet again, rather than just a corner of the closet (in my defense, the “closet” is 10’x10’).

Or maybe it’s soot

On By CarynIn Craft

I had the idea of heating up a metal stamp and burning a letter into a wood crochet hook to mark the size.

Holding a metal stamp with a silicone holder over a candle flame
Letter “L” marked on the bottom of a wooden crochet hook

I tested several times on paper before trying to burn the letter on the wood. It works OK, but I’m not sure if I actually burned the wood, or just stamped on some soot. Either way, it is marked, but for future hooks I should be able to find a more elegant way.

He is going to be huge

On By CarynIn Cats

Thor the kitten is about four and a half months old. Here he is stretched out on a large dog bed, which he has appropriated.

Thor stretched out to take up 2/3rds of a large dog bed

I can no longer hold him with one arm. I’ve been loosening his collar a couple times a week, so I think he is currently in growth spurt. It will be interesting to see when and where the growth stops.

Frogging and recycling

On By CarynIn Cats, Craft

Years ago I crocheted the mermaid tail blankets that were all the rage for my girls. The idea was cool, but they never used them. Getting in and out of a leg hugging device is a pain.

Crocheted mermaid tail blanket

With my girl’s great room switch this summer, I found the blankets tucked in the back of their closets. One got sent to recycling, but Izzy the cat gave me an idea for the second.

Izzy lying on the blanket draped over a chair.

Rather than sending the blanket for someone else to recycle, I could frog it (rip it, rip it out) and reuse the yarn. Bernat makes a wonderful blanket yarn that doesn’t shed and holds up well after years. So I found the end (by the way, weaving in the ends really does secure them well, it took forever to free the yarn!), and rather than undo all the stitches and wind a ball, I’m crocheting from one project to another. I frog a bit, crochet a bit, repeat. It skips the ball winding part and deprives the kitten of an opportunity to unwind the ball of yarn. What am I making? Cat mats. I use a smaller hook, and a single crochet stitch and make a rectangular mat. The blanket yarn and stitch make it thick and sturdy, and Izzy completely approves of the finished project.

Izzy laying on a mat crocheted with Bernat blanket yarn

In the background of the picture is an amigurumi bunny, also made of blanket yarn. I’m developing a mix and match pattern and will be teaching an upcoming class. The yarn from the blanket it too dark for critters, but I can take the mats to our local no-kill shelter.

Guardians of the Garden

On By CarynIn Garden, Wildlife

I hadn’t seen my little tree frogs in my garden this season. I was afraid that since I chose not to grow melons, they left for other places that were more friendly for perching. Turned out they just blend into the basil better.

Two tree frogs tucked into the basil leaves